Los Angeles Says Goodbye to Adam West By Lighting the Bat-Signal

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Last weekend, Adam West passed away at the age of 88—but his legacy as TV’s first Batman will never be forgotten. On Thursday night, Los Angeles paid tribute to West’s portrayal of the Caped Crusader by transforming downtown LA into Gotham City.

In a ceremony hosted by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and Police Chief Charlie Beck, the iconic Bat-signal was activated in front of a large crowd of West’s fans and admirers, who witnessed the world famous Bat silhouette as it appeared on the wall of City Hall. Chief Beck even jokingly admitted that lighting the Bat-signal was something he had always wanted to do. And can you blame him? We’d light it every night if we could!

West’s Batman was admittedly campy and a bit goofy, but fans have re-embraced his take on the “Bright Knight” within the past few years. Batman ’66 made a comeback in the comics and was finally released on home video. Later this year, one of West’s final performances will be in the Batman ’66 vs. Two-Face animated movie, in which he got to portray Batman one last time.

A few of West’s Batman co-stars appeared at the Bat-signal event, including former Boy Wonder, Burt Ward, who served as West’s Robin for the better part of 50 years. In memory of his friend, Ward shared the following thought: “My friend Adam would want every single one of you to be incredibly happy and to be joyous because he spent his entire life as a performer, making people happy, making them laugh, and trying to make this world a better place.”